Newbies! Don't miss Wednesday's annual club derby!

It seems to me you young whippersnappers in the club have two options next Wednesday, Sept. 26, at the only formal competition between Loveland Fishing Club members:

• You can show up at the Colorado Youth Outdoors' Swift Ponds and gratefully learn about the subtleties of fishing from some of northern Colorado's most esteemed and veteran anglers.
• Or you just show us up and catch the biggest fish of the day.

This will be true no-holds-barred combat angling:  one pole at a time, artificial bait only, fish from 8 a.m. until noon (unless we all agree earlier that we're all too hungry to continue).  The grand prize winner is the man or woman who catches the biggest bass.  A second prize will be awarded to whomever catches the largest single fish of any other species, as measured by length alone.  

The grand prize winner gets his or her name engraved on the tournament trophy, and keeps the thing until this time next year.  You can probably even bring the trophy with you to Perkins for breakfast every Friday for 52 weeks, though even Norm didn't try that.  Regardless, bragging rights are at stake here, and a shore lunch.

Directions:  Take Highway 392 West to County Rd. 5. Turn right (north) onto County Rd. 5. Take County Rd. 5 north to County Rd. 36 (Ketchter Road). Turn Left onto County Rd. 36, the Swift Ponds gate will be on your left.  We'll meet by the first pavilion, and scatter from there.  Remember, this is catch and release only, and we're guests of our good friends and allies at Colorado Youth Outdoors, so be on best behavior.  And no chumming.